Construction firm sues HISD

A Fort Bend construction company accused in a federal bribery lawsuit of conspiring with HISD trustee Larry Marshall now is suing the Houston school district, claiming the firm is owed $9.8 million for renovation work it performed.

Fort Bend Mechanical filed the suit Thursday in Harris County against the Houston Independent School District, alleging that HISD has "refused to pay" the company for numerous campus renovation projects.

The six-page filing does not mention that Fort Bend Mechanical is entangled in a federal civil lawsuit on the same side as HISD. In that ongoing case, a competing construction contractor accuses Fort Bend Mechanical, HISD, Marshall, his business associate and another company RHJ-JOC of conspiring in a bribery and kickback scheme.

The Houston Chronicle has reported previously that HISD officials met with Fort Bend Mechanical in December to discuss concerns about some of its construction projects. An HISD attorney said at the time that the issues were unrelated to the bribery lawsuit.

HISD spokesman Jason Spencer declined Thursday to comment on the new lawsuit. In the bribery case, the school district, Marshall, Fort Bend Mechanical and the other parties have denied wrongdoing.

Project delays

Fort Bend Mechanical, in its lawsuit against HISD, contends that the company "experienced delays, costs and damages due to the acts and omission of HISD."

For example, the suit alleges that HISD did not hire a mandatory hazardous abatement consultant, delaying construction work at Worthing High School. The company also claims that HISD caused a nearly seven-month delay on the Waltrip High School project by not providing critical information to an energy company about a new transformer.

Fort Bend Mechanical, which is owned by David "Pete" Medford and his wife, Sharon, started as a heating and air-conditioning company in 1998 and more recently has delved into larger construction projects.

Trustee's connection

Marshall, HISD's longest-serving trustee, previously confirmed to the Chronicle that his grandson had worked an entry-level job at Fort Bend Mechanical.

Court records and deposition testimony show that Marshall got a free trip to the 2009 Super Bowl in Florida with the Medfords, and Marshall failed to disclose a $25,000 campaign contribution from David Medford later that year.

The Chronicle reported in early May that a federal grand jury had subpoenaed documents related to the bribery lawsuit, but the target of the criminal investigation was not clear.

Medford also confirmed that he had received a federal subpoena related to HISD, but he did not disclose details about what records investigators were seeking.

Ericka Mellon covers K-12 education for the Houston Chronicle, reporting on schools in the greater Houston area and on education issues statewide.

Before joining the Chronicle in 2006, she covered education for the Knoxville News Sentinel in Tennessee and worked as an assistant editor at Chicago magazine. Mellon graduated from Northwestern University with Bachelor's and Master's degrees in journalism. Send story ideas and tips to ericka.mellon@chron.com.